Echoism
by maglin
Summary: "Her steps become unsteady, she is feeling dizzy and has to remind herself, that she cannot let go of the package in her arms. Must not let go, no matter how heavy it has become during the last minutes. She must keep moving, must keep running, walking, even crawling if that keeps her friends out of danger. "- Couple of OneShots, updated when ever i get an idea -No. 3: Mocha
1. Listen to the Rain (Robin)

**_Listen to the rain_**

_~splash splash splash~_

Who would have thought that the sound of rain could be this deafening. Each single drop echoes through her head as it crashes on the ground, hungrily devoured by the sand of Alabasta's desert. And each single drop is an unwelcome reminder that she has survived. That she survived _again_. She had been prepared to die today. For her idea, for her dream. It is not like there would be anybody to miss her, so she had put everything in her search without a second thought and it had filled her life with sense and purpose. But the search, the hunt after her goal, is over now and gone are purpose and sense, leaving nothing behind but the scared little girl from twenty years ago. She is alone again. Even her dream has left her now.

_~splash splash splash - _drip~

Blood mixes with the rain, drawing red patterns on the sand. Her blood. Maybe, just maybe she will die nonetheless. Her wound is deep after all. Then again, life has never been this kind to her, so she does not expect too much. But she is tired of running, tired of hiding and deceiving. Why is she not allowed to lay down and sleep, sleep and never wake up?

_~splash splash - _drip_ - splash - _drip~

Yes, she had been prepared to die without regrets, what she had not been prepared for was to survive every single time. Her mother, her fellow archaeologists, Saul, her home... Every single drop of blood is a face disappearing from her life while she has to stay and every drop of rain is a hunter at her heels she cannot escape from.

~drip - _splash_ - drip drip - _splash~_

She has no desire to survive like this, unlike the person that carried her out of the tomb, dragging her limp body along with himself and all she wanted was to demand him to stop, to let go of her so that she could die in peace, down in the grave chamber, away from the deafening rain. Buried by history... that seems like a suitable place to die to her. But its to late now, she is already up here and the boy is gone, carried away by the king. He seemed like her complete opposite, she thinks. Living with every fiber of his being he_ is_ life. He made it seem so easy.

~drip drip drip~

Her vision is fading, everything is a blur of colors and even the sound of the rain is becoming fainter and fainter. But right before darkness is finally coming to get her, she hears a new noise, the sound of footsteps approaching her at high speed and a hoarse voice shouting words she cannot understand anymore. But she knows what this means. Someone spotted her and she will survive, once again.

A face appears in her mind, beaten up badly, grinning despite the poison running through his veins.

Yes, she is surviving. But maybe, just maybe, this time she will also try to live , she thinks.

* * *

**A/N:** Just a little thing i wrote while...no.. _instead_ of learning -.-'

reviews are appreciated, but not necessary

btw... what genre is this? i have no clue ...

Robin belongs to Eiichirō Oda


	2. Every Breath you take (NamixLaw)

_**Every breath you take**_

She is lying in the dark, her auburn eyes fixed on his bare back, tracing the thin black lines, drawing patterns on his skin. Every time a car passes by the window light is darting over them, making it seem like they are alive.  
She is not sure, how long she is lying here already, listening to his steady breathing and trying to gather enough courage to move closer.

_~ In - Out In - Out ~_

It is oddly calming and unsettling at the same time, she thinks while her gaze follows another flash of light.

_~ In - Out In - Out ~_

She did not expect it to be like this. Sure, she had known from the very start, that he was not the type for closeness, let alone romance. But that had not been what she had been looking for anyway. Still... She cannot help but feel oddly alone and kind of used. Like a tool he throws away, when he does not need it anymore. Night after night.

_~ In - Out In - Out ~_

And night after night she would lie here, watching his back and listening, completely motionless as if the slightest movement could scare him away, what is probably the most ridiculous thought ever... then again, who guarantees her, that he is not doing just that. And so she is finding excuses for herself, why she should not move closer, counting his breaths until she can not take it anymore. Just like tonight. And she is calling herself a coward for being like this, but again - she can't help herself.

_~ In - Out In - Out ~_

She flinches at the noise the bed is making when she finally moves closer, an unpleasant loud sound in the quiet of the room. If it woke him up, he does not show, he is not even acknowledging her, when she presses her forehead between his shoulder blades... but he does not brush her off either and she is grateful for that.

**x**

He is lying in the dark, his pale eyes closed, waiting, but sleep does not come for him. He is not sure how long he is lying here like this already, listening to her irregular, shallow breathing. It almost sounds like she is trying to make as less noise as possible and he wonders if she is even aware of it.

_~ In - Out ~_

It should be irritating, but it is not.

_~ Out - In~_

The sheets rustle and the bed frame cracks and then he feels the mattress shift when she comes closer. He does not know why, but she is doing this every night, breathing in her fitfully way and then suddenly she moving closer, like she has been waiting all the time to do so.

_~ In - Out ~_

But, he thinks when he senses the now already familiar feel of her warmth behind him, he does not really care, why.

_~ In - Out In - Out ~_

Because the moment he feels her head resting between his shoulders and hears her almost inaudible relieved sigh, before her breathing gets slow and deep and finds its rhythm - he realizes, that this has been, what he was waiting for and suddenly finding sleep is not any longer a problem.

* * *

**A/N:** An AU, 'cause there is now way those two would get some peace while the strawheads are around... or the Heart Pirates for that matter, i could imagine Bepo to be kind of clingy XD

Charas belong to Eiichirō Oda


	3. Sweet Sacrifice (Mocha)

_**Sweet Sacrifice**_

_~ CRACK crash thud ~_

There is thunder, loud and threatening , but no lightning. It's rumbling down the halls, coming from behind her, from her sides and for a moment she could have sworn she heard them in front of her too. _Them_, not_ it_. Because this frightening sound is not coming from a brewing storm... it's coming from her friends.

_~ creack clatter clatter CRASH ~_

Screams mix into the rolling thunder. Screams and growls and threats, their voices so hoarse and desperate that she nearly cannot recognize them. But she knows them too well, all of them. They have become friends over the past months. They have become family. At least she thought so. Right now there is nothing left of her friends, their once friendly and familiar faces twisted into horrifying masks of anger and even hate, and if there had been any doubt left, that the little fuzzy doctor was right, now it is gone. The candy, no, the poison, is hurting her friends, threatening her family's dreams and she will not stop until she can be sure that they are all safe.

_~CRACK crash thud ~_

The noise is becoming louder, which must mean that they are coming closer. Chubby legs, way too long for her young age, take bigger steps, while her hands grab the package tighter. She is not sure, how long she can keep that speed up, but she has to try.  
There is a new sound among the thunder and the howling, thin and whistling and it takes her a few moments, until she realizes that it is her own breathing. It is loud. So loud.

___~ creack clatter clatter CRASH ~_

Her steps become unsteady, she is feeling dizzy and has to remind herself, that she cannot let go of the package in her arms. Must not let go, no matter how heavy it has become during the last minutes. She must keep moving, must keep running, walking, even crawling if that keeps her friends out of danger.  
But it is hard. So hard. And the thunder becomes louder and louder. The ground is shaking, her vision fading her fingers claw into the smooth surface of the package, sweet and colorful just like its contents. Its contents... Just when there are closing in on her and the thunder becomes so deafening, that its rumbling drowns out even her heavy breathing and the desperate sob, that has escaped her throat, she has an idea. A way out. An escape for all of them... except for her.

_~ crack crash thud ~_

The thunder stops and desperate hands grab the poisonous candy, while she opens her mouth and closes her eyes. She does not want to remember them like this: frightening monsters, crazy with need. Behind her closed lids they are calm and smile at her with warm eyes, their hands stretched out, not to claw at her but to welcome her among them. She smiles as well... and swallows.

* * *

**A/N: **Late tribute to the courgeous Mocha

Chara belongs to Eiichirō Oda


End file.
